Affliction
by The Immensity of Density
Summary: A story about Magnuses past. reviews are apriciated. rated T for suicide not magnuses obviously .
1. Chapter 1

Magnus sat on his hay mattress with his knees tucked to his chest, watching the faint blue sparks dance around his fingers. They created the only light in his windowless attic bedroom and somehow, they comforted him. He cocked his head to the side, it would be dark soon, and he would be able to go down stairs again. Magnus sniffed the air, he couldn't smell supper, his mom had probably forgotten about it.  
Magnus got up and opened his flimsy, wooden door about an inch. He could only see a bit of the staircase but he could tell the house was empty of anyone who would be scared of him. Empty of everyone except for his mother.  
From the moment Magnus was born he had been hidden away, allowed to come out only in the darkness of the night. His eyes were a deep yellow with slited pupils like a cat, his hair was jet black, and his skin was pale white. Because of his appearance he was proclaimed a devil child and sentenced to immediate death. Magnus didn't know why his mother had let him live the past fourteen years, but he suspected it was because he was all she had left of his father.  
Back when Magnus was little his parents had at least pretended to love him but once his father left his mother just shut off and told him it was his fault. He still kept him and cooked meals for him, but that was probably out of fear of those blue sparks he made.  
Magnus sighed, opening the door all the way and slipped down the stairs. "Mother, did you for-" Magnus froze. In front of him was a corpse, suspended by a rope from the ceiling, rotating slowly. Magnus's eyes began to water and he screamed. His mother was dead, and it was his fault because he was a monster. How would he live? What could he do now? He ran.

Magnus didn't know what to do, he didn't know how to get food, much less cook it, and he had no where to go. So he kept running, scared and hungry, into the forest, where even the beasts were scared of him.  
There was a noise to the right followed by someone calling "Boy!" Magnus stopped and they called again. Where they talking to him? Magnus turned and saw a bald, friendly looking, elderly man in a robe the colour of snow running towards him. The man seemed shocked and out of breath for a second before smiling.  
"Where are you going child?" Magnus stared. "Are you lost?" Why had the man not run? Everyone who saw him ran.  
"I have no where to go." stated Magnus. The man shot him a questioning look. "M-my mother hung herself, because… because of me." Magnus's eyes began to water again. The man patted his shoulder.  
"You may come to the church, child, all are welcome to stay there." Magnus stayed silent. "What's your name, child?"  
"Magnus…uh, Bane" he stuttered.  
"Well Magnus Bane, I am Father Andrew, the priest for the local church. Will you be coming with me?" the man smiled then turned, and Magnus, a bit dazed, followed silently.

Magnus was given a room in the back of the church that was usually reserved for visiting holey men. It was small with white walls and a low bed, but it was a lot nicer than the attic he used to live in. Father Andrew put heavy curtains over the room's window and warned Magnus about wandering into town, for people did not understand and would call him a monster.  
"But I am a monster." Magnus mumbled but the Father just shook his head.  
"You're no monster, Magnus, just blessed in a unique way"

For the next week or so Magnus occupied himself by exploring the church. He then began to watch Father Andrew's evening service from a confessional in the back of the room. He liked to pretend he was praying with the other people, rather than sitting by himself in the back, and them oblivious to his existence.  
Magnus was sulking in the confessional when he noticed him. A boy about his age, with short, fluffy brown hair, soft chestnut eyes, and a lightly tanned complexion, was staring at him. They locked eyes and a look of confusion crossed the boys face. Magnus panicked, the boy was going to yell then they would find Magnus and have him killed. Magnus waited, but the boy simply looked away quickly.

For the rest of the service Magnus watched the boy. He sat between two fat women who made him look positively twig like with their husky frames. He kept his head bowed most the time, looking up only twice, once at the Father and once at Magnus but his gaze always found his feet without much delay.  
When the service ended the boy stood behind a group of people who were talking to the Father, his gaze fixed on his feet until they left and Father Andrew patted him on the shoulder. The two began to talk but Magnus couldn't hear a word they said.  
Father Andrew nodded and walked to the front door to lock it. "Magnus, would you mind stepping out?" Magnus eyed the boy wearily and slowly emerged from the confessional. "Magnus, this is John. He's from the village and would like to meet you."  
The boy, John, walked up to Magnus slowly and stuttered a "Hello." Magnus nodded. Johns face fell and he turned to Father Andrew. "Can he not talk?" he asked.  
"Of course I can." Magnus stated bluntly. John looked down and mumbled something, and Magnus nearly laughed at how short he was. Magnus was about 5.8" and John barley made it to Magnus's shoulders. Before Magnus could say anything Father Andrew spoke.  
"John I think you should be heading home now, before it gets dark." He patted John's back.  
"Oh…" John looked at Magnus "…g-goodbye"  
"Bye" Magnus said flatly. John left and Father Andrew turned to Magnus.  
"Magnus, you should try to be nice to John, he's a good boy and he's already accepted you. I'm sure you could use a companion your own age." Magnus's face was blank. Had he been rude? He wasn't sure; he hadn't ever had a real conversation before…

The next day John stayed behind again, though he didn't seem all too eager to this time. Why isn't he scared? Magnus walked up behind the small boy. "Um…" john jumped a bit and turned. "Oh, sorry…" Maybe he was scared.  
"I-it's fine. You just startled me…" Magnus felt awkward asking but he had to know.  
"Why aren't you scared of me? Usually people see my eyes and run. Don't they bother you?" Magnus asked. John shook his head.  
"No, I actually think their pretty" John slapped his hand over his mouth. "Sorry, I didn't mean to call you pretty." John lowered his head. Magnus didn't really understand John, wasn't pretty a compliment?

Weeks passed and John began to stay after Father Andrews services more and more often as he and Magnus grew closer. Sometimes John would come in the middle of the day and he a Magnus would sit in the backroom playing with his blue sparks while John informed Magnus about things happening in the town, things Magnus had never even heard of. "A party? What's that?" he asked. John laughed.  
"Well, it's when people get together to celebrate something."  
"You mean like church?"  
"No, umm… parties are usually happier and they have food too…they're a lot funner than church." Magnus leaned back against the wall and thought. He didn't really understand parties.

The more John told Magnus the more curious he became about the town and how it worked. Magnus started wandering out of the church at night to stare at the small town down the hill. He wondered which little house was Johns and what he was doing at the moment, though he was pretty sure John was sleeping like he ought to be.  
"Magnus? Child, what are you doing?" Father Andrew walked up to where Magnus stood and looked around. "What if you're seen?"  
"Sorry, I just…" Magnus didn't know what to say. Father Andrew smiled.  
"Go back inside Magnus, please." He did as he was told.


	2. Chapter 2

Magnus couldn't sleep. All he could think about was the town below and the things John had told him about! The market, the bakery, the parties! He couldn't stand it! He had to see the town with his own eyes! And maybe Father Andrew was wrong about the villagers, maybe they would accept him, John had.

Magnus stepped out of the church, closing the door quietly behind him. He took a few steps then stared running down the bumpy dirt road towards the small town. Once he was a couple meter away from the first row of buildings he stopped and worried a little about people seeing his eyes. He ran his fingers through his hair and pulled it in front of his eyes. It covered them a bit and he hoped it would be enough in the dark to convince people he was normal. When he lowered his hands he noticed the familiar blue sparks fluttering around his fingers. "No, go away!" he said. He focused hard on his hands and the lights grew a bit brighter before fading.  
Magnus took a step when he heard a door open and close quietly, the sparks came back, Magnus tried to hide his hands but he knew it was too late. He turned to run when he heard a familiar voice. "Magnus? What are you doing here?" John looked around and ran up to him with a confused face. "What if someone sees you?"  
"I just couldn't stand it any longer John! I had to see the town for myself! Please, let me stay for a while, then I'll go back to the church! I promise!" Magnus noticed the sparks had disappeared. John seemed to think about it for a minute before he sighed and nodded.  
"Fine, but you have to let me show you around so you don't get lost." Magnus smiled and grabbed John's hand.  
"Come on, I want to see everything!" John seemed shocked for a minute the he smiled and let Magnus pull him back into the town.

"So was that your house? You know when you found me?" Magnus asked while staring through the large window of the bakery.  
"Yes, I thought you knew." John stared at him. "I figured you were using your lights to get me outside."  
"Oh, actually it was and accident, I don't know why they started up." John opened his mouth to speak but he was interrupted by a third person who had just come around a corner.  
"Oi! Whatdu'ya think yer doin'?" Magnus turned and noticed the man had a bottle in his hands and wobbled a bit as he walked. "yuh shouldn't be out af'er dark." Magnus could smell alcohol on the man. He tensed a bit as the man came closer. "Ey! What cha' got in yer eyes?" the man lifted Magnus's hair an froze a look of fear spread across his face and Magnus backed away.  
"Run." He whispered to John just before the man started yelling about devils coming to earth.  
Magnus pulled John through the streets that were now slowly filling with panicked villagers. The two ran in and out of alleys, while a crowd steadily grew behind them. Magnus spotted the area he had come in from and sped towards it.  
"Go home John, I'll deal with them!"  
"I can't! They'll see me!" Magnus felt dread in his stomach but kept running up the hill with John. He risked a look behind them and saw the large crowd now had torches with them. Magnus picked up his pace and John nearly tripped. Magnus caught him and continued running. They turned onto the church yard and slipped inside locking the door behind them.  
"Magnus! John! What are you doing?" Father Andrew was sitting in the third row of pews. John hastily explained before a shout of "In here!" cut him off. People started banging on the door. The trio turned and noticed smoke and small flames coming from the front of the church. Father Andrew stood up and rushed to the Opposite end of the church. "Come boys, we haven't much time!" The Father opened a door behind his podium. That led outside into a garden.  
"You must leave before they find you!" Father Andrew closed the door behind him. "They'll soon come to the back to set fire to it." Magnus began to pull John towards the forest but he wouldn't move.  
"John! Come on, we have to go!" Magnus shouted over the sounds of the crowd. A tear rolled down Johns cheek as he shook his head. "What?"  
"I-I can't Magnus, I have to take care of my family. They need me."  
"He's right Magnus, You have to go alone, god be with you." Magnus stared at John who promptly looked away.  
"I…" Magnus didn't know what to say. "I guess-" Magnus was cut off by John who had wrapped his arms around his torso.  
"I'll miss you so much! Come back if you can!" Magnus retturned Johns embrace and suddenly it became very clear that he would never be able to come back if he wanted to keep these two safe. Magnus stared down at the small boy in his arms who looked up at him with teary eyes. His own eyes began to water as he stroked back and leaned down to kiss him. John immediatly returned his kiss, holding Magnus tighter, but after a few seconds Magnus pushed him away.  
"…Goodbye" Magnus stared at the pair, trying to remember the image as best he could, then turned. "Forever." he added quietly. then he did the single hardest thing he had ever done in his life.  
He ran.


End file.
